Should you let your kids use your smart phone?

Twenty per cent of three year olds use a tablet every day or regularly, says Dr Joanne Orlando, a Lecturer in Technology and Learning at the University of Western Sydney.

Smart phones and tablets are a big part of children's lives, she says. "Whether or not they are beneficial is a good question."

Handheld devices offer ways of playing that traditional forms don't offer. "They expand the repertoire of playing that a young child has and that's a good thing."

Unlike adults, children approach technology as a toy, says Dr Orlando. "They go about discovering these things and they're very good at investigating and discovering.

"Crack the code, find the problems and sort them out.

"I know of a few parents whose children can unlock the passcode on their smart phone.

There are many apps are being developed for children starting from about the age of two, notes Dr Orlando. "From about that age, there's a lot of educational benefits that can come from using apps."

Getting the right balance between screen time and other activities is difficult at any age, as any parent knows, she says, "It's hard getting 16 year old off; it's hard to get a two year old off.

"I think that, as with any new thing, parents have to set boundaries and be consistent.

"Any sort of boundaries that you're putting around your children's behaviour, you need to be consistent but you also need to be fair.

For instance, telling a five year old they can use the tablet for 10 minutes is "an unreal expectation because he can't do very much in ten minutes".

A lot of research has been done about the effect of solo technology use on social ability says Dr Orlando. At first, it was thought that any effect would be detrimental, she says.

"They also have done a lot of research to show that when children are with someone else and playing a game onscreen, there's lots of talking between the children - probably more so than if they were just sharing a toy.

"A screen based game can promote a lot of talk as well."

Dr Orlando does see problems with using technology as a device to keep children quiet. "As with any sort of pacifier, those things are appropriate if used in a limited way.

There are hidden messages contained in the act of consistently giving a child the smart phone to play with in a social situation as a way of keeping a child quiet, she says.

Parents can be sending a message to their children that he or she is not really important; "their conversation isn't valued in that context".

Dr Orlando doesn't feel that parents should deny their children new technology or delay its introduction to when a children is older.

"One of the things to think about is that technology is such a big part of all our lives that it's very hard to deny a child one aspect of it, especially when it such an important and valued part of society.

"Children talk with each other about the things they play with and the things that they do and using technology is often one of the things they talk about."

"If you're lot allowing your child to use technology until a much later age, they're not going to be able to take part wholly in those sorts conversations with their peers.

"Being part of that situation is important for children."

As to how much time to allow interacting with a screen, Dr Orlando advises putting of technology use into relationship with the other things that are important; time with family, time outside, time doing nothing, helping around the house.

"Find an appropriate time based on the child's age and what else is happening that day," she says.